Category Archives: Pentaho 5.x

Pentaho BI Server CE 5.2 migration to 5.3 and then 5.4 has been a difficult process. Soo many changes, undocumented, some without obvious reasons. I hope it’s just because I don’t get the new vision and that it will get easier over time.

This notes are from my system in which I use MySql for hibernate, quartz and business databases. The Jackrabbit repository is kept on the filesystem. The steps are the same on Linux and Windows, just change the suffix from .sh to .bat. By the way if you’re on windows 7 32 bits, stick to jdk 1.7, Pentaho is not compatible with the current 1.8 version.

Note: They fixed in 5.4, for people using i18n localization in PRD parameters, so numbers in text fileds doesn’t get reformated (i.e. years got visualy modified to 2,015).

Part I: Backup

Take an inventory:
Log into your system, browse your ‘solutions’ and make an inventory, maybe take some snapshots so you can check that every option did make it through the export-import step.
Browse your files (enable ‘show hidden files’) for resources, and files like .xmi, .sailu, .cda, etc.
List the Marketplace plugins you use.
In Datasources and administration make note of your configuration an users you have set up.

Copy the exported-file.zip file to upload.zip (keep the original as backup). Open it and delete folders that are from Pentaho Demo (Steel Wheels, cde, plugin-samples, bi-developers), those ‘solutions’ already exist in Demo. Just keep your files.

Edit the exportManifest.xml in the same zip file to remove all items (xml opening and closing lines) that are not from files, your solution folders, take for example one at the bottom that correspond to a graphics file:

Check your quartz5 prefixed database against the script on, including case sensitive if your OS or DB are sensitive.biserver-ce/data/mysql5/create_quartz_mysql.sql
If there are diferences it is better to recreate the database.

If you get an error, clear your browser cache, for Quartz errors check your database prefix.
Login as ‘Admin’ again.

Install Plugins:
If you use a different language than English, in Home->Marketplace, install your language package, restart the server. Then from the Tools -> Language Packs choose install and restart again. These are two related steps.
In Home->Marketplace install plugins like Saiku, Saiku Chart Plus, WAQR, restart.
In Home->Administration, create your users. Asign the admin role to at least one of them.
In Manage DataSources, modify the SampleData jdbc to access MySql. You can create your SQL Mysql Database Connections or wait until you move in your files in next section.

You can check the new Dashboard in Browse Files->Public->Steel Wheels->Dashboards->CTools Dashboards.

Part IV: Move in Your Content

Wiith your server running:
In a terminal, load your backup file. Use your user and password that you created in las section:

Copy your content from your backup folder in biserver-ce/pentaho-solutions
This files (solution folders, metadata files, mondrian models) are not used as they are outside of the repository but I use them for development and then upload them.

In ‘Manage DataSources’, create your JDBC, Analisys, Metadata and OLAP connections, as you upload files that were not included in the export-import process like mondrian.xml, metadata.xmi. This is where your inventory from your old system is most valuable (you can start it as long as both are not running at the same time).

The changes on login screen images, login page html and index main content works as I wrote in here.

There is no Emerald Theme yet from the marketplace.
But I got most of it when I copied it from the backup 5.2 directory:

pentaho-solutions/system/pentaho-emerald-theme/

Haven’t checked those .css. They need minor tune up.

I didn’t use my edited localization messages.properties created in previous posts as the translation in the marketplace are good enough.

That’s it. You have now a Pentaho BI CE 5.3/5.4 system.

Part VI: Install your Desktop Development Tools

To update your Desktop Tools rename their current folders to somethining-old, download the new files, that are really slow form the legendary sourceforge.net and unzip them on your Pentaho5 folder so you’ll have them all in one place:

This are not the final instructions, but they will allow you to test the new server with your content and data as you have them now.

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This are the steps I took for my Pentaho 5.0 to 5.1 and 5.1 to 5.2 upgrades. My installation uses MySql for hibernate, quartz and business databases and I keep the Jackrabbit repository on filesystem. The steps are the same on Linux and Windows.

And turn off the default users select combo at login page (that should be disabled in your administration console) in line 20:

<login-show-sample-users-hint>false</login-show-sample-users-hint>

This is where I had trouble:
This didn’t work: I first ran the update onbiserver-ce/data/mysql5/create_quartz_mysql.sql
to make shure I had de correct quartz5 prefixed tables, then created upper/lower cased tables, tables, deleted conten on different folders, and so on. But ran on errors at startup about listener problems:

Cannot create JDBC driver of class

SystemListener.xml

EmbeddedQuartzSystemListener.ERROR_0007_SQLERROR

PentahoSystem.ERROR_0014 org.pentaho.platform.scheduler2.quartz.EmbeddedQuartzSystemListener
with no luck on making it work.

This did work

Dropping the quartz database and ran the SQL script at:biserver-ce/data/create_quartz_mysql.sql
that creates qrtz5_ prefixed tables and also updates user permissions.

Modified as suggested in the script:biserver-ce/pentaho-solutions/system/quartz.properties
that’s the quartz config, to:

[skip this one, Marcelo suggested a better option]Edit biserver-ce/pentaho-solutions/system/systemListeners.xml and stopped Quartz Listener from runnig. That is the problem with this instructions: your system won’t be able to schedule jobs as it is:

Copy your images, .html , messages files with your modifications from your backup folder to the new one. There is a previous checklist.
Note: Had only to modify directly the .properties files (insted of the _es.properties) on biserver-ce/tomcat/webapps/pentaho/mantle/ (browser & home/properties) for my localized text as the i18n calls didn’t work for the left panels.

Update your plugins on the marketplace

Now you can try your new and beautifull NEW 5.2 BI system.

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Notes on the 5.2 – MySql – Quartz Problem

There are some Quartz listener/socket problems reported since v3.6, but every recomendation on forums or blogs hasn’t worked so far. The error is present on windows/ubuntu, java 32/64 bits, mysql/mariadb.

This is what I found so far:

The problem is not IN the database as no query appears on the MySql general log, until the Pentaho shows the problem.

Pentaho & Webdetails dit it again, as promised, on October, the new GA release, I can’t wait to see whats new (new theme & marketplace, improved PRD COSSTABS?) or check the release notes. Still no integrated Saiku on CE but you cant have it all 🙂